Art Institute of Chicago

Figure in Central Asian Dress

China

Date

Tang dynasty (618–907), first half of the 8th century

Medium

Earthenware with three-color (sancai) lead glazes and traces of pigments

Culture

China

Department

Arts of Asia

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

This figure wears soft, peaked caps, long coats with wide lapels, and tall boots—garments that resemble Persian and Central Asian dress in the 8th century. By that time, Chinese merchants and envoys traveling along Silk Road trade routes had brought previously unknown styles from such regions to Tang-dynasty fashion and leisure activities. This figure holds a small bird that cannot be confidently identified. The work may depict a falcon—which were bred for sport in Persia—or a species from China’s southern and western borderlands, such as a parrot or cockatoo, which would have been collected for pleasure.

The authoritative record is held by Art Institute of Chicago. LinkedCulture surfaces this object and its connections; it does not alter institutional metadata.